Here’s a list of 25 free ones.

Don’t have the time or interest to learn about proper mixing? Enter Levelator, a free application for Windows, Mac and Linux. From the Conversations Network website:

It’s not a compressor, normalizer or limiter although it contains all three. It’s much more than those tools, and it’s much simpler to use. The UI is dirt-simple: Drag-and-drop any WAV or AIFF file onto The Leveler’s application window, and a few moments later you’ll find a new version which just sounds better.

Personally I’m highly skeptical to shortcuts like these, but hey, might work for some.

Via Audio Geek Zine

If you’re the techie type of podcaster, you’d be very open to buying different gadgets to help you in your podcasts.

If you want to record your phone interviews with an exceptional level of quality you should get a handset tap. For example, a great gadget is the QuickTap manufactured by JK Audio. The $60 device will fit in between the phone base and the handset. It has an analog audio input that can be used to attach to a computer. Of course, the limitation of the QuickTap is that it will only work on a traditionally wired phone setup.

Of course, there are other devices available in various stores that will allow you to record phone conversations. Just look at the features and check which ones you will need.

Ever wanted to tame that noisy unbalanced podcast, well then you might just have to add some hardware that’s small yet compact and mobile enough for you to take with you anywhere. Ever been caught with a standard mic without the USB connector at the end, no worry, this next thingy comes with the advantage of a USB converter and universal adapter allowing you to connect both condenser and dynamic mics to a gadget that balances everything out, giving you clear and crisp podcasts.
from Bluemics.com comes the Icicle, a gain control device that allows you to adjust the amount of sensitivity (through a built in knob) that features seamless installation without the need for drivers. You plug it in and start recording on whatever recording software you may have. It’s a USB converter, gain control and preamp, all in one barrel packaged product that includes a six feet cable so you never snag on those scattered stuff on your desk.
Most basic mics come with their might tamed by the audio card that is pre installed onto your system. You use the mic jack and that’s it, not much control for whatever you’re recording and you have to get some heavy software to balance out everything. Why not start control of the audio before it hits the USB input so you get clear, clean input that needs little digital enhancement. Some of the best mics in the world are still analog by design for they offer the most clear audio. Add control to your podcast audio before you get it into the computer for better and clearer podcasts even your mom can understand.

If you plan on doing any talking at all in your podcast a microphone is definitely a must. While you might have some crappy old thing lying around (or perhaps a computer with a microphone of it’s own), you will find that a proper microphone increases the quality drastically. For podcasting, I would say that you basically have two choices: a condenser microphone or a dynamic microphone.
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Everyone enjoys music and everyone has their own taste in it. But no matter what people think about, there is one common thread with everyone who partakes in this past time, it is a catharsis which makes life seem a little less boring. That’s why you have the opportunity to listen to as much music as you want by converting your MP4 to MP3. Basically an MP4 is for video and audio, while an MP3 is just for audio.

You can convert dozens to audio formats to MP3, including AAC, OGG, and M4A. MPEG-1, MPEG-4, AVI, and MOV are just some of the MP3 extracted from MP4 to satisfy your listening pleasure. The MP4 to MP3 converter makes the files compatible to listen on a handful of MP3 music players. The files are compatible with Zune, iPod shuffles, iPod nanos, iRiver, and Creative Zen Vision. The files are converted with a Bitrate calculator which compresses any output file into any size. There are various adjustable parameters available in this program such as decoding CD, converting pointed segment to MP3, and converting multiples files at once.

This program is very easy to use and very user-friendly. All you need to do is load the source file and hit the convert button. While waiting for the conversion process to be completed, you can surf the web or continue doing your work because you have the option of running the program in background until the process is complete. When the conversion is done it will automatically perform the task complete actions.

Here’s a few USB powered microphones and kits made for podcasting or the like. When USB microphones first came into this world they got a bad rep among professionals. Since then it seems like things have change, at least a bit. I have no idea about how good these particular microphones are though, so you’ll have to try them for yourself.
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